Factory (Photo credit: TimothyJ)
Why manufacturing companies can't hire enough workers.
As the economy creeps toward a recovery, U.S. factories are creating many new job openings. The problem is that factory owners are having a hard time finding skilled workers to fill the openings.
According to CNN Money, there is a shortage of skilled machinists. In a factory, a machinist is a common and crucial position. As manufacturing jobs declined in this country, fewer and fewer people enrolled in the technical schools that teach this trade.
The shortage of machinists and other skilled factory workers is coming at a very bad time. American manufacturers are on an upswing and are struggling to keep up with the demand. In fact, several factory owners report that they have been trying to fill vacant positions for months and that they are worried that they won't be able to find the skilled workers they need. To keep up with demand, their current employees are having to work longer hours.
Part of the problem is that the people who have the skills are primarily baby-boomers who already work in factories. Over the past few decades, American companies started outsourcing their manufacturing jobs, leaving the field looking less attractive to new workers. Years ago, getting training to become a machinist seemed like a bad gamble. Now that the jobs are coming back, there aren't enough new workers who already possess the skills to do the job.
In a factory, the machinist is essential. They operate the machines and create machine part. Also, they make molds and casings that mold plastic parts. Typically, it takes about a year of trade school to become a machinist. After that, an aspiring machinist will have to complete an apprenticeship at a manufacturing facility.
The average salary for a skilled machinist is about $60,000. With the sudden high demand, some machinists are bringing in more that $100,000 a year. Because of the highly technical nature of the craft, it isn't always possible to hire a worker and train them. Because of this, many factory owners are worried about what will happen when their current machinists begin to retire.
Have you seen this shortage of skilled manufacturing workers? Please share your thoughts in the comments.
By Melissa Kennedy- Melissa is a 9 year blog veteran and a freelance writer for ManufacturingWorkersBlog and Nexxt. Along with helping others find the job of their dreams, she enjoys computer geekery, raising a teenager, supporting her local library, writing about herself in the third person and working on her next novel.
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